Photo courtesy of Dale Rogerson’s real life and completely unrelated to my fictional tale, in case you were worried.
Welcome Neighbor
by T. Delaplain
A soft cough and a flash of Sunday best fabric announced the committee’s arrival; midwestern hospitality and a basket of freshly baked welcome. She stopped unpacking the life she no longer recognized; boxes full of illusion and stifling small town safety.
She debated her options before the first tentative knock. Her instructions were to, “blend in”, but her instincts said, “run.” She tucked her gun into the elastic of her polyester stretch pants, patted her new permanent waves and turned the knob.
She heard the pop before she felt the impact.
Well thank you Jesus, there would be no more muffins in hell.
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Friday Fictioneers welcomes you.
Take a muffin and try your hand at 100 word fiction but your last breath.
Tracey Delaplain, MD 
Dear Tracey,
I guess that wasn’t the freshly baked welcome she was expecting. So much witness protection. Good story. I loved this.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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In my mind it was a welcome change. Maybe she was tired of running.
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Thankfully NOT related to my real life 😉
Are ya happy Rochelle chose this pic, finally? LOL.
Dang… she didn’t even have a chance to unpack and start anew….
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I didn’t want to blow your cover! When I suggested this photo, I was thinking about budding romance but this story took a dark turn. Ha ha
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Ha ha Ha! Don’t you just live how the muse just takes over?
I was going somewhere else then ended up where I did!
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Ooops. Make that love…
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Freshly baked welcome is a wonderful line. And the rapid narrative shift from newcomer to prey to humour was skillful to the point of envy
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That’s high praise from a master story teller. Thank you Neil.
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Not the welcome she was expecting. Someone at Witness Protection has been a bit careless, or bribed!
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One must not assume that she was a good guy.
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Ah, intriguing 😉
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I was a little turned off by the polyester pants with the elastic waistband. Perhaps it was the fashion police that shot her. 🙂
That’s the good thing about heaven. No bran muffins and no rock-hard fruitcake.
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Not into polyester? Her Midwestern fashion intel must have been way off. Maybe she was Russian and only had the 1950’s handbook. 😄😄😄
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Looked at too many his & hers matching outfits in Montgomery Ward catalogs is my guess. Gee, I think I’ll wear an orange plaid jumpsuit on my next trip to the mall.
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There’s a story for you! Feel free to borrow the polyester to build your yarn.
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I’m definitely going with the elastic waistband.
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Well, she did a good job “blending in” in so far as everyone had a gun 🙂
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Right? Her gun must have gotten caught up in her polyester pants.
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Lovely narrative! So much in so little words. That expression—’freshly baked welcome’ was a great one!
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Thank you Esha.
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Too bad her instincts didn’t have her sneaking out the back door!
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Sometimes we ignore our instincts on purpose. Maybe the polyester was too much to handle.
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That’s doing it the hard way. Awesome story, though. You packed it all in. Super job!
Any recipes for muffins, Tracey? Some, maybe healthy ones?
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I hate muffins! Actually I’m not a baker. I did make smoked salmon cream cheese muffins a few weeks ago that were delicious.
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Ohhhhh, I’d LOVE to have tried those!
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And thank you
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So many memorable lines in this story. I loved the Sunday best fabric the most.
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Reminded me of my mom who actually dressed for church every week.
“You aren’t wearing that to mass are you?”
“God doesn’t care mom.”
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Ha, I heard that conversation many a time.
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From: a flash of Sunday best fabric To: the elastic of her polyester stretch pants
Perhaps I should be glad I don’t live in the midwest? And ditto what Neil said. Color me green.
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Ha ha, she does leave you with a “what not to wear” sort of vibe.
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Maybe they should have sent her to Alaska where she could live on smoked fish, wear fox fur and people have to crawl through a tunnel to enter. Opening doors is always iffy when you’re hunted. But hindsight is always 20/20. 🙃
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Yes, maybe so. ha ha
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Terrific story – I especially like your last line.
Click to read my FriFic
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Oops! And she didn’t even finish unpacking! This was fantastic on so many levels, Tracey. From the humor, the narrative to the imagery… just too good. Cheers, Varad
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Thanks Varad. I’m glad you liked it. It’s difficult to be humorous whilst writing about an execution.
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Wow! Didn’t see that one coming. Just when she thought she was safe… Wow!
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Safety is an illusion. Thanks Jelli.
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So tightly written and surprising. Loved it!
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Thank you Sascha. I’m glad you stopped by.
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I loved the image of tucking a gun into polyester pants, combined with a new perm. An unusual runaway, indeed.
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She should have listened to her instincts. These freshly baked welcomes always cause trouble. Great story, Tracey. I saw her as an assassin or spy.
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Definitely not a fashion industry spy. Ha ha
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For some reason, I kept thinking “Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot!” Don’t know why. Well done in bringing back a memory that I may have wanted to forget! XD Well done!
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Thanks Miles but sorry about the flash back. Yikes
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Good intrigue with a nod to cooking …this might be a mystery series!
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Ooo, I cook and I write fiction, sounds like a winning combination for a mystery series. Maybe “La Señora” could run her drug business out of her bistro. “The Tacos Were a Hit” ha ha
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Exactly! lol
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